Of sugarless coffee and glory on the track: Priya Mohan's journey

Part of the bronze medal-winning under-20 mixed relay team, the athlete aims to break the 50 seconds barrier in 400 meters

Coach Arjun Ajay and Priya Mohan

Cold coffee without sugar and a grilled sandwich without cheese or mayonnaise. Priya Mohan finally gets to relish this treat after 11 months, the reward for her spoils at the recently concluded World Athletics under-20 Championships in Nairobi, Kenya.

Priya along with her team-mates Bharath Sridhar, Summy and Kapil edged out the Jamaicans to clinch bronze in the 4x400 meters mixed relay in a time of 3:20:60.

What makes the feat of the young quartermiler more commendable is the fact that she ran five 400m races within a span of five days, excelling in each one of them.

On the first of the five days, Priya began with the mixed relay heats followed by the individual 400m heats before finishing off with the third-place finish in the mixed relay finals. After a much-needed two-day break in between, she narrowly missed out on an individual bronze by finishing fourth in the 400m finals albeit with a personal best timing of 52.77 seconds. The last day saw the Indian quartet of Payal Vohra, Summy, Ranjitha and Priya finish fourth once again in the women’s 4x400m relay.

“Had there been heats for the women’s relay, the count would stand at six races,” quipped Priya adding that she had to face tense moments as her coach Arjun Ajay was denied accreditation card to enter the venue during the tight schedule.

The importance of a personal coach during an athlete’s event is crucial, a nuance not too many comprehend. “Look at how Bobby George’s presence to make minute changes made a huge difference during Shalini Singh’s big leap of 6.59m for the silver. Me not being allowed into the stadium during Priya’s events was disappointing. There is always some drama during every competition, so we have learned to take it in our stride and tackle it in a way that it does not affect our performance,” said Arjun, who spotted Priya at an ICSE School Nationals in 2018.

Though the accolades feel good, the road to reach this stage was always a bumpy one.

With the synthetic track removed at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium for over 18 months and the Sports Authority of India (SAI) Centre, in Kengeri, not allowing outsiders to enter owing to the Covid-19 protocols, Priya, a Vijaynagar resident here, travelled over 100 km to Vidhyanagar Stadium to practice everyday with special permission granted from the Bengaluru Police to commute during the lockdown.

“We went to Ooty which is 2,240 mts above sea level for high-altitude training in April for 35 days to prepare for Nairobi (1800 mts). Here too we were denied entry into the HADP stadium for reasons unknown that forced us not to go back for another training stint before the global competition. Thankfully the Nazareth Convent in Ooty let us train on the 200-meter mud track inside their premises in April,” explained Priya.

Results of the hard work put in during these months started showing when she won the gold in 400m by defeating athletes in the National Inter-state Senior Athletics Championships held in Patiala in June which served as the final qualifying event for the Tokyo Olympics. Despite this effort, she was not selected for the quadrennial event as she was not part of the national training camp.

Not the one to ponder over things beyond her control, the determined athlete then went on to win gold in 200m and 400m a month later in the National Junior Federation Cup also held in Patiala. “I didn’t give missing the Olympics much thought. My sole focus is on breaking the sub-50 seconds barrier in India. We are invested in improving each day and nothing else,” said Priya, who was born Habbathanahalli village in Tumakuru district.

“And it to only get tougher from now on as the expectations have raised. We will continue to work harder after achieving every milestone,” added Arjun.

As for the parents, who she said is her biggest strength and support system, Priya though has a few complaints. Father HA Mohan - a Lokayukta Judge - stayed true to his profession by rushing to inspect the medal hanging on Priya's neck even before embracing her at the airport in Delhi. While mother Chandrakala, a homemaker, has other worries. "Of course Amma is happy about my recent achievements but she is more anxious about the change in syllabus as I step into a new academic year in a completely different stream," said Priya with a sigh, who is set to pursue B.Com after completing her second PU by scoring 84% in PCMB at Mount Carmel College.